16-hour fast (aka 16:8): The most popular type of intermittent fast, the 16-hour fast encourages you to eat all of your meals in an 8-hour window, such as noon to 8pm. To activate the full benefits of intermittent fasting, try an 18-hour fast, once you’ve adapted to 16 hours. This would mean eating between noon and 6pm or between 2pm and 8pm. Simply avoid eating after dinner, and skip breakfast in the morning. Limit carbs to dinner.
What if we told you that the answer to losing weight, improving body composition, and feeling better isn’t about dieting, but instead skipping meals every once in a while? For some, intermittent fasting, or going a longer period of time — usually between 14 and 36 hours — with few to no calories, can be a lot easier than you may think. And the benefits might be worth it. If you think about it, all of us “fast” every single day — we just call it sleeping. Intermittent fasting just means extending that fasting period, and being a bit more conscious of your eating schedule overall. But is it right for you? And which method is best?
If these extended periods without delicious food sound too painful to handle, rest assured: The best available evidence indicates that a regular ol’ diet is at least as safe and healthy and efficacious as intermittent fasting. Besides, sooner or later, a shiny new fad is bound to come along for the A-listers to fawn over, she says: “There’s going to be a new darling of the month before you know it.”
The Old Testament law specifically required prayer and fasting for only one occasion, which was the Day of Atonement. This custom became known as "the day of fasting" (Jeremiah 36:6) or "the Fast" (Acts 27:9). Moses fasted during the 40 days and 40 nights he was on Mount Sinai receiving the law from God (Exodus 34:28). King Jehoshaphat called for a fast in all Israel when they were about to be attacked by the Moabites and Ammonites (2 Chronicles 20:3). In response to Jonah's preaching, the men of Nineveh fasted and put on sackcloth (Jonah 3:5). Prayer and fasting was often done in times of distress or trouble. David fasted when he learned that Saul and Jonathan had been killed (2 Samuel 1:12). Nehemiah had a time of prayer and fasting upon learning that Jerusalem was still in ruins (Nehemiah 1:4). Darius, the king of Persia, fasted all night after he was forced to put Daniel in the den of lions (Daniel 6:18).
Another big concern of mine, but it turns out this fear was unfounded. We’ve been told by the supplement industry that we need to consume 30 g of protein every few hours, as that’s the most amount of protein our body can process at a time. Along with that, we’ve been told that if we don’t eat protein every few hours, our body’s muscle will start to break down to be burned as energy.

The very simple and direct conclusions I draw are these: First, if the Bible teaches us to do something, I want to do it. I want to obey the Lord in every way that He commands me to obey Him. And second, if fasting and praying are means to a breakthrough that God has for me, I want to undertake those disciplines so I might experience that breakthrough!

The devil comes at us the same way. The devil never tells us that drinking alcohol can make a person an alcoholic. He never tells a person that smoking cigarettes can cause him or her to have lung cancer. He never tells a person that eating too much of the wrong foods can lead to chronic illness and premature death. The devil points out only short-term benefits, never long-term disasters.

All three types offer the same fat-burning benefits of intermittent fasting. The real differences are just in how long you’re fasting and what you’re allowed to eat during the fast, Varady says. On both whole-day fasting and alternate-day fasting, for example, you consume 500 calories per fast day to spark fat loss but maintain muscle. During time-restricted feeding, however, you’re consuming zero calories during your fast period (water and tea, for example, are allowed). In all types, you’re free to go hog-wild during the feeding window—though, obviously, all nutritionists would recommend you ditch the junk and stick to healthy fare.
Although certain benefits of caloric restriction have been demonstrated in animal studies, similar benefits of intermittent fasting in humans have not been observed. It is unclear that intermittent fasting is superior to other weight loss methods in regards to amount of weight loss, biological changes, compliance rates, and decreased appetite. Certain people who typically eat one or two meals a day or do not eat for long stretches of time may show better compliance with this type of regimen.
Now, intermittent fasting isn’t magical—your calories still count. It’s just an alternate way to reach that same calorie restriction, says Grant Tinsley, Ph.D., C.S.C.S., an intermittent fasting researcher and assistant professor of exercise physiology at Texas Tech University. “With traditional calorie restriction, you’re following a normal, healthy eating pattern but eating less at each meal. With intermittent fasting, you’re eating roughly the same number of reduced calories, just in a confined time frame. You’re just giving yourself different parameters to live within.”
Well, most notably, it’s a great way to get lean without going on a crazy diet or cutting your calories down to nothing. In fact, most of the time you'll try to keep your calories the same when you start intermittent fasting. (Most people eat bigger meals during a shorter time frame.) Additionally, intermittent fasting is a good way to keep muscle mass on while getting lean.
In addition to the fasts mentioned above, Roman Catholics must also observe the Eucharistic Fast, which involves taking nothing but water and medicines into the body for one hour before receiving the Eucharist. The ancient practice was to fast from midnight until Mass that day, but as Masses after noon and in the evening became common, this was soon modified to fasting for three hours. Current law requires merely one hour of eucharistic fast, although some Roman Catholics still abide by the older rules.

TV/Movie Fast: You can take a break from a weekly favorite and use the time to pray or read the Bible. Is there a small group at church that you've thought about joining but it's during the time your show is on? Do you spend your Saturday binging Netflix when you could take some time to mentor someone God has placed on your heart? This is also a good time to evaluate how much of your time is spent watching TV and whether you need to cut back to make time for other priorities.

Cons: Going 24 hours without any calories may be too difficult for some — especially at first. Many people struggle with going extended periods of time with no food, citing annoying symptoms including headaches, fatigue, or feeling cranky or anxious (though these side effects can dimish over time). The long fasting period can also make it more tempting to binge after a fast. This can be easily fixed… but it takes a lot of self-control, which some people lack.
In this example, lunch on Monday is your last meal of the day. You then fast until lunch on Tuesday. This schedule has the advantage of allowing you to eat everyday of the week while still reaping the benefits of fasting for 24 hours. It's also less likely that you'll lose weight because you are only cutting out two meals per week. So, if you're looking to bulk up or keep weight on, then this is a great option.
By the 21st century, although fasting clearly was applicable in some instances of disease, such as in certain acute diseases (particularly when accompanied by a loss of appetite), whether fasting in other instances was beneficial to human health remained unclear. For example, whereas research in humans had suggested that intermittent fasting carried out over 15 days improved insulin-mediated glucose uptake into tissues, studies in rodents had indicated that such fasting, carried out over the long-term, promoted glucose intolerance and the release of damaging oxidants from tissues.
While these five methods are the most well-known in terms of integrating periods of fasting into your eating schedule, there are many other similar philosophies based on meal timing. For those who prefer a more fluid, less rigid method, there’s also the concept of eating intuitively. Primal Diet proponent Mark Sisson is a supporter of the Eat WHEN (When Hunger Ensues Naturally) method, where dieters simply eat whenever their bodies ask them to. However, some believe this can also lead to overeating or overconsumption of calories, since our bodies’ hunger-induced choices may be more caloric than otherwise.
For some, fasting may be easier to maintain if viewed as a semi-regular activity throughout the week. If you don’t think you can cut down on calories every day of the week at first, try a low-calorie fast for only two days a week. However, you have to be careful about this schedule: just because you’re not fasting every day doesn’t mean that your “off days” should be used to binge on high calorie foods.
So: The first two weeks of intermittent fasting will suck. “Like anything else, fasting becomes easier the more you do it,” Fung says. You’ll likely experience side effects (lack of concentration, irritability, headaches, maybe constipation), and you may feel hungry, but you shouldn’t feel weak, he adds. Learn how to cope with these and know that if you can power through the first 7-14 days, you’re golden.
Studies show that intermittent fasting accelerates weight loss. In a 2015 review pooling 40 different studies, participants shed on average 10 pounds in a 10-week period.[1] Another study found that obese adults following an “alternate day” intermittent fasting schedule (eating 25 percent of their daily calories on one day, and eating normally the following day) lost up to 13 pounds over 8 weeks.[2]
Catherine Gates is Senior Director of Content & Partnerships for Workmatters. She oversees the development, distribution and support of Workmatters content to equip marketplace leaders to live out their faith at work. She also builds partnerships with clients and other marketplace ministries. Catherine has a broad range of experience in technology, sales, training, public speaking and curriculum development. She’s passionate about her faith and helping people tap into more of God’s best for their lives while bringing God glory.
The combination of fasting and praying is not a fad or a novelty approach to spiritual discipline. Fasting and praying are not part of a human-engineered method or plan. They are not the means to manipulate a situation or to create a circumstance. Fasting and praying are Bible-based disciplines that are appropriate for all believers of all ages throughout all centuries in all parts of the world.
In order for a fast for God to be effective, you must also pray. Praying and fasting to God is a powerful weapon against adversity. Joel 1:14 says, "Declare a holy fast; call a sacred assembly. Summon the elders and all who live in the land to the house of the Lord your God, and cry out to the Lord." A fast for God puts your trust in Him as the only one who can help you. During your fast for God, remember that He is faithful and true, willing and able to help you in any way He can.

Embarking on an intermittent fasting diet can feel daunting. After all, depriving yourself of food willingly doesn’t sound like a barrel of fun. An easier way to get started is with the Bulletproof Diet, a 16:8 style fast, where you eat nothing after dinner until lunchtime the next day. Yes, you skip a normal breakfast, but instead of running on empty, you drink a Bulletproof Coffee instead. The healthy fats from the grass-fed butter and Brain Octane Oil, coupled with the kick of caffeine, give you energy and keep you full without switching on your digestion. Because there are no sugars, carbs, or protein, you remain in the fasting state but you’re able to power through your morning and get stuff done. Learn more here on how to boost your intermittent fasting results.

Fasting has been used in Europe as a medical treatment for years. Many spas and treatment centers, particularly those in Germany, Sweden, and Russia, use medically supervised fasting. Fasting has gained popularity in American alternative medicine over the past several decades, and many doctors feel it is beneficial. Fasting is a central therapy in detoxification, a healing method founded on the principle that the build up of toxic substances in the body is responsible for many illnesses and conditions.

We are not to fast to have people feel sorry for us or to think we’re pious (Matthew 6:16-18 Matthew 6:16-18 16 Moreover when you fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear to men to fast. Truly I say to you, They have their reward. 17 But you, when you fast, anoint your head, and wash your face; 18 That you appear not to men to fast, but to your Father which is in secret: and your Father, which sees in secret, shall reward you openly.

This proved to be the most important forty days of my life. As I waited upon the Lord, the Holy Spirit gave me the assurance that America and much of the world will, before the end of the year 2000, experience a great spiritual awakening. This divine visit from heaven will kindle the greatest spiritual harvest in the history of the Church. But before God comes in revival power, the Holy Spirit will call millions of God's people to repent, fast, and pray in the spirit of 2 Chronicles 7:14:

Dr. Michael Mosley, the creator of The Fast Diet, believes that fasting can help with weight loss. For Dr. Mosley, the term fasting does not mean abstaining from all food, but rather limiting food intake and adapting simplified eating patterns to help you lose weight. Below are some of Dr. Mosley’s recommendations for a safe fast as well as a few extra Oz-approved tips and tricks.

The Fast Diet is a low-calorie plan that aims to help followers lose weight – specifically fat – and reduce their risk of a host of chronic diseases by severely limiting calories two days a week. The plan – created by Michael Mosley, a journalist trained as a doctor at the Royal Free Hospital in London, and Mimi Spencer, a journalist and author – mirrors a pattern of eating often referred to as the 5:2 diet: you eat normally for five days of the week and cut your calories to about 25 percent of normal intake on two nonconsecutive days of the week. Men consume just 600 calories on their two weekly fast days, while women are limited to 500 calories. Those calories should be spent wisely on high-protein foods, such as skinless chicken, nuts and legumes, as well as fruits and veggies with low glycemic loads like strawberries and carrots.
And there’s more than anecdotal experience like Corbin’s that fasting can help people lose weight. In a one-year study, 100 obese adults ages 18 to 64 were assigned to three groups. One group practiced alternate-day fasting, eating 75 percent fewer calories every other day; another group followed CR, with a 25 percent calorie restriction every day; the rest were in a control group. Compared with the control group, the fasters averaged 6 percent weight loss, and those assigned to CR averaged about 5 percent, according to the 2017 paper in JAMA Internal Medicine.

Dr. Michael Mosley, the creator of The Fast Diet, believes that fasting can help with weight loss. For Dr. Mosley, the term fasting does not mean abstaining from all food, but rather limiting food intake and adapting simplified eating patterns to help you lose weight. Below are some of Dr. Mosley’s recommendations for a safe fast as well as a few extra Oz-approved tips and tricks.

Hi, I posted yesterday and my results are in after 4 days. I started the week at 140lbs and I’m now at 134lbs – 135lbs. I eat between 1500 – 1800 and walk every day 45 minutes. I weight trained on Tuesday and Wednesday, cardio Thursday, weight train again today with cardio(Friday). Only for 45 minutes per session – I can’t afford much time on my lunch hours. More details for you women out there who are mothers and who work full time: start with walking 30 minutes a day, fast pace.

Still, researchers are exploring whether fasting might help fight cancer, or help cancer patients tolerate chemotherapy. And they’re putting serious thought into whether fasting has a role in treating and preventing diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and multiple sclerosis. But while the animal literature is rich, the literature in humans is promising — though far from conclusive. As this 2017 review of the science found, the studies on fasting to control Type 2 diabetes come to contradictory results, and there’s “minimal data” comparing the effects of fasting to plain old calorie restriction in overweight or obese people with the disease. There were also no studies on fasting and human cancer rates.
How It Works: Not completely satisfied with the IF diets listed above? This method takes the best parts of Eat Stop Eat, The Warrior Diet and Leangains, and combines it all into one plan. You also get one cheat day each week (yay!) — followed by a 36-hour fast (which may be not-so-yay for some). After that, the remainder of the seven-day cycle is split up between the different fasting protocols.
^ Jacobs, Henry Eyster; Haas, John Augustus William (1899). The Lutheran Cyclopedia. Scribner. p. 110. By many Lutherans Good Friday is observed as a strict fast. The lessons on Ash Wednesday emphasize the proper idea of the fast. The Sundays in Lent receive their names from the first words of their Introits in the Latin service, Invocavit, Reminiscere, Oculi, Lcetare, Judica.
Autophagy is spring cleaning for your cells. It’s Latin for “self-eating,” which is spot-on: when autophagy turns on, your cells sift through their internal parts, get rid of anything that’s damaged or old, and install shiny new versions.[8] Autophagy is like a tune-up for your car: afterward everything runs more smoothly. It reduces inflammation and even boosts longevity. Intermittent fasting triggers, to quote researchers, “profound” autophagy, especially in your brain.[9]
The trial, which aimed to investigate how food deprivation affects the aging process, involved 218 normal and slightly overweight men and women between the ages of 21 and 51. Of the group, 143 of them were tasked with following CR, eating 25 percent fewer calories than usual — a decrease deemed feasible based on animal studies. They were to keep this regimen for two years with help from a behavioral intervention team and dietitians to make sure they were getting basic nutrition.
MONDAY: Fast Day // On fast days I only drink coffee, tea, non-caloric drinks and water (flavored sparkling water like La Croix has been awesome during fasting, my favorite is the Peach-Pear flavor). I add a little half & half in my coffee, and those are the only calories I consume on fast days. If/when I feel hunger pains on fast days, I drink a bottle/can of sparkling water and that helps me get through the day.
One type of ketone flooding the brain is beta-hydroxybutyrate, or BHB. According to a paper published in February in Nature Reviews Neuroscience, BHB stimulates memory, learning and the cellular housekeeping process of autophagy in mice. BHB also triggers neurons, including those in the hippocampus, a memory center in the brain, to release what’s called brain-derived neurotrophic factor, or BDNF, a protein that is important for learning, memory and improved mood. CR doesn’t generate these levels of ketones because glucose stores are never empty.
Mosley tried this "intermittent fasting" diet when his doctor showed him that though he was only a few pounds overweight, his cholesterol was high and his blood sugar was headed in the wrong direction. He writes that he knew fasting would be difficult, but his hunger pangs passed quicker than he expected. He also felt that fasting sharpened his senses and his brain. Plus, the diet delivered all the results he hoped for.
Side effects of fasting include dizziness, headaches, low blood sugar, muscle aches, weakness, and fatigue. Prolonged fasting can lead to anemia, a weakened immune system, liver and kidney problems, and irregular heartbeat. Fasting can also result in vitamin and mineral deficiencies, muscle breakdown, and diarrhea. When you drink laxative concoctions during a fast, there is an increased risk of fluid imbalance and dehydration.

For example, in the graphic below you would eat dinner on Monday night and then not eat again until Tuesday evening. On Wednesday, however, you would eat all day and then start the 24–hour fasting cycle again after dinner on Wednesday evening. This allows you to get long fast periods on a consistent basis while also eating at least one meal every day of the week.

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Mosley tried this "intermittent fasting" diet when his doctor showed him that though he was only a few pounds overweight, his cholesterol was high and his blood sugar was headed in the wrong direction. He writes that he knew fasting would be difficult, but his hunger pangs passed quicker than he expected. He also felt that fasting sharpened his senses and his brain. Plus, the diet delivered all the results he hoped for.

Worried about losing muscle if you fast? Maybe this will put your concerns to rest: a single 24-hour fast increased human growth hormone (HGH) by 2000% in men and 1300% in women.[2] HGH plays an integral role in building muscle. Boosting your levels this high will have huge effect on your physique. Research shows that higher levels of HGH leads to lower levels of body fat, higher lean body mass and improved bone mass.[3]

Longo warned that any fasting diet should start with a visit to the doctor. Fasting studies have not been done in children, very elderly people, or people who are underweight — so it’s possible fasting could be harmful in these cases. “If you’re a diabetic and taking insulin or any other drugs, or if you have metabolic disorders, you should not fast,” he added, noting that fasts done poorly can also increase the risk of gallstones.

Time-restricted feeding (TRF) involves eating only during a certain number of hours each day.[6] A common form of TRF involves fasting for 16 hours each day and only eating during the remaining 8 hours, typically on the same schedule each day. A more liberal practice would be 12 hours of fasting and a 12 hour eating window, or a stricter form would be to eat one meal per day, which would involve around 23 hours of fasting per day.[medical citation needed]
DU: There are different kinds of fasting. Scientifically speaking, ‘fasting’ can be caloric restriction, intermittent fasting, or dietary restriction. Caloric restriction is simply cutting down your energy intake by 20 to 40 percent. Intermittent fasting involves forgoing food completely for a period of time, say morning till evening, and then eating normal meals the next day or so. Dietary restriction is limiting or eliminating a particular macronutrient from one’s meal, say proteins or carbohydrates, for a season.

The devil comes at us the same way. The devil never tells us that drinking alcohol can make a person an alcoholic. He never tells a person that smoking cigarettes can cause him or her to have lung cancer. He never tells a person that eating too much of the wrong foods can lead to chronic illness and premature death. The devil points out only short-term benefits, never long-term disasters.

And there are many plans, because there are many schools of thought about what’s considered fasting, what food or drink should be consumed during eating windows, and how long these windows should last. Here are a few of the most common methods: Intermittent fasting means eating normally four or five days a week and consuming minimal calories on two or three nonconsecutive days. Time-restricted eating requires setting a window for consuming food, such as 7 a.m. to 7 p.m, and having nothing but noncaloric liquids the rest of the time. The “fasting mimicking diet” involves eating a small number of calories daily for a specific period of time — say five consecutive days every other month. These protocols all have benefits and drawbacks. One approach may work well for some while being entirely unsustainable for others.
To achieve a ripped/lean look your body needs to use your stored fat as fuel. In order to do this, you must burn off your glycogen stores first. When you lift weights, you typically use glycogen as fuel. By lifting weights before cardio, you can burn the majority of your glycogen stores. Knocking out your cardio after you crush the weights will burn more fat!
When you have a major decision to make. God delights to guide and lead us through life’s tough decisions, whether at the individual or corporate level, or at the private or business level. But worldly distractions can make it difficult to hear from God. When we fast, we surrender at His feet, listen, wait and worship. Fasting helps us to stay unhurried before him and engaged in His presence.
Jesus was indicating that fasting would become a necessity when, the bridegroom (Jesus) was taken away. While Jesus, who was God manifested in human form, was still on earth, His followers enjoyed a close fellowship and friendship with Him. Jesus bestowed power and authority on them to the extent that they had limited power to preach, heal the sick, and cast out devils. Similarly, when Jesus sent them out to minister to the populace, He instructed them to take few provisions. “Then Jesus asked them, ‘When I sent you without purse, bag or sandals, did you lack anything?’ ‘Nothing,’ they answered. He said to them, ‘But now if you have a purse, take it, and also a bag; and if you don't have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one’” (Luke 22:35-36).

Unger’s Bible Dictionary explains that the word fast in the Bible is from the Hebrew word sum, meaning “to cover” the mouth, or from the Greek word nesteuo , meaning “to abstain.” For spiritual purposes, it means to go without eating and drinking (Esther 4:16 Esther 4:16Go, gather together all the Jews that are present in Shushan, and fast you for me, and neither eat nor drink three days, night or day: I also and my maidens will fast likewise; and so will I go in to the king, which is not according to the law: and if I perish, I perish.

Those fasting may experience side effects of fatigue, malaise, aches and pains, emotional duress, acne, headaches, allergies, swelling, vomiting, bad breath, and symptoms of colds and flu. These reactions are sometimes called healing crises, which are caused by temporarily increased levels of toxins in the body due to elimination and cleansing. Lower energy levels should be expected during a fast.

^ Harris, Elizabeth J. (7 June 2010). "Violence and Disruption in Society: A Study of the Early Buddhist Texts". Access to Insight. John T. Bullitt. Retrieved 7 June 2011. If you, Rahula, are desirous of doing a deed with the body, you should reflect on the deed with the body, thus: "That deed which I am desirous of doing with the body is a deed of the body that might conduce to the harm of self and that might conduce to the harm of others and that might conduce to the harm of both; this deed of body is unskilled (akusala), its yield is anguish, its result is anguish.

Whether you are considering a 12-hour fast, a two-day fast, or a daily low calorie fast, you should talk to your doctor before beginning a new eating regimen. Certain medical conditions may get worse with sudden changes in diet and some medications are affected by changing the foods you eat. A doctor can help you weigh the possible benefits and consequences of a fast to see if it’s right for you.
Fasting is an ancient practice sparking new interest in both pop and scientific culture. Entrepreneurs, venture capitalists and a variety of celebrities have extolled its virtues in helping them lose weight, while medical experts are intrigued by the possibility that it may enhance cognitive functioning and longevity and help treat and prevent some diseases.
No, it's not a cure-all for creaky joints, wrinkled skin, or brittle hair, but IF prompts an increase in human growth hormone (HGH), which promotes cellular repair, says Foroutan. She explains that not eating for several consecutive hours creates a slight stress on your cells' mitochondria (the energy powerhouses), which gives them a nudge to rev up their functioning. IF might also be helpful for brain health; animal studies suggest that this eating pattern might serve to ward off age-related cognitive decline.
What’s more, 25 percent of people who were assigned to the fasting group in the first part of this study dropped out, compared to 10 percent of those in the regular diet group. That suggests that fasting is hard and maybe not for everyone — even when you’re part of a study. So someone like John Kane, who lost a lot of weight through fasting and loves it, may be in the minority.
^ Bhikkhu, Thanissaro (5 June 2010). "Questions of Skill". Access to Insight. John T. Bullitt. Retrieved 7 June 2011. Each time you're about to act, ask yourself: "This action that I want to do: would it lead to self-harm, to the harm of others, or to both? Is it an unskillful action, with painful consequences, painful results?" If you foresee harm, don't follow through with it.

It is important to note that no variables are changing in regards to my workout, from before or during the experiment. This is the same training style I have used for the last couple years. The only things that change are the amount of weight at which I use. As my strength goes up, I go up in weight to keep the same type of rep range and difficulty.

One reason experts tell people not to cut way back on calories is that it can slow your metabolism, making it even harder to lose weight. But studies show that fasting from time to time can be an effective strategy for weight loss. In addition, cutting calories on a couple of days instead of every day may help preserve muscle, so you lose mostly fat.

Cons: Even though there is flexibility in when you eat, Leangains has pretty specific guidelines for what to eat, especially in relation to when you’re working out. The strict nutrition plan and scheduling meals perfectly around workouts can make the program a bit tougher to adhere to. (You can learn more about the specifics — as well as when to time these meals — directly from Leangains here and here.)

I recently got in touch with Kane, a reader who’d emailed me in the past, to hear about his experience with fasting because I’ve been noticing the buzz growing louder lately. Famous enthusiasts include reality TV star Kourtney Kardashian, musician Moby, and model Molly Sims. Actor Chris Pratt has been Instagramming about his Bible-based fast. In the media world, New York Times economics columnist Paul Krugman and MSNBC host Chris Hayes have mentioned their fasting routines. Over the past couple of decades, as dozens of diets and weight management schemes have come in and out of fashion, fasting has steadily gained popularity.
It is also considered to be an appropriate physical preparation for partaking of the Eucharist, but fasting is not necessary for receiving the sacrament. Martin Luther wrote in his Small Catechism "Fasting and bodily preparation are certainly fine outward training, but a person who has faith in these words, 'given for you' and 'shed for you for the forgiveness of sin' is really worthy and well prepared."[70]